The Skunks is an unconventional coming of age story about Isabel, a young woman who is house-sitting, baby-sitting, and working at a yoga studio in her home town the summer after her college graduation. It is a quick read that falls into the “no plot just vibes” category, and the vibes are certainly…quirky.

In this story, we see Isabel navigate friendship and other relationships while musing on her future life direction. However, there is no definitive “end” to the story and it honestly felt more like a short story to me than a novel. Just a little snippet of Isabel’s life that we get to witness.

We also get a lot of snippets about skunks. Isabel sees three skunks in the yard at the very beginning of the story and they become a prominent presence in the story—or rather, they become their own story told alongside Isabel’s. Honestly, the skunks lost me a little bit. It felt like they were meant to be a metaphor for something that I couldn’t quite grasp. Even though I didn’t find anything profound in the skunk stuff, it did add to the weird and fun vibes of the book and I did overall enjoy Warwick’s unique writing style.

This book did not speak to my soul, but it might speak to yours! Give it a try if you love peculiar prose, fever-dream-esque meandering novels, or just love skunks!

Thank you Tin House and NetGalley for the eARC.

UGH, fantastic. Were Fiona older than me, and had this book come out when I was in high school, I would have read this and dreamed big lil dreams of my near future. It would have meant so much to me. Instead, I'm reading it as I turn 30, on the other side of college, on the other side of my time in Western Massachusetts, and it means even more to me than it could have then. So sweet and cozy, so perfectly captures a slice of life. It made me cry for personal reasons, lol. Great work, loved it <3

This was such a short and cute read. My favorite part about it was the POV of the skunks. Honestly, if the animals weren't so dang stinky they'd be the cutest things ever!

This was a short, concise read. "The Skunks" looks at a thin slice of the life of Isabel, a young adult in the space between college and the first "adult" milestone after it. This period of time is such a strong liminal space for many young people, and the author did a great job capturing the very real feelings of being between two different but equally important life phases. The book is conversational and the plot is straightforward. The characters are memorable and authentic. The author's inclusion and sometimes centering of the neighborhood skunks and their own lives added interest and unique detail in what is essentially a universal story.

This book is more of a meditation than a story, which feels entirely right for Warnick’s style of writing and, I think, what she’s attempting to say with it.

In some respects this has the bones of a typical “young adult adrift after college” novel, but it’s more than that, albeit with less plot. Warnick is at her best when her protagonist is simply musing, be it about her own life or something broader, and the prose feels both relatable and aspirational.

It’s not uncommon to feel lost at this stage of life (indeed, I expect most of us felt that way), but the thoughtfulness put into this particular portrayal of it is both comforting and thought provoking.

Be prepared for an unnecessary animal death toward the end of the novel. It’s predictable but not pleasant if, like me, this kind of thing bothers you. Fortunately it doesn’t detract from the quality of the book, or from the lovely relationship the protagonist imagines between herself and the titular skunks.

I felt all of the main characters feelings - it was so real which I feel like I wasn't expecting. Skunk perspectives were good but a little weird.

How could my little animal-loving heart not be excited about a book called "The Skunks"? Even better, skunks weren't exclusively used as some big metaphor; there were actual skunks in this novel. This pleased me more than one would expect.

Skunks aside, I enjoyed following Isabel as she wove through life, facing challenges and questions in a post-college world. I appreciated the small moments and clever observations that made this story such a breeze to read through. I'm a sucker for a more character-driven book, and The Skunks delivered.

This book felt so underdeveloped to me. I wish I would've counted how many times the author said the word, 'skunk'. It was a lot. Yikes. Fiona Warnick is a very young author, I'm sure her writing style will continue to improve as she ages. She has potential but she's not a strong storyteller yet. I usually enjoy cute and quirky/slice-of-life novels, but this one felt flat and underwhelming. I think I would've enjoyed this more if the story had a bigger plot or more interesting protagonist. In the end, I just didn't care, and I was mostly bored.

Thank you, Netgalley and Tin House for the digital ARC.

Isabel is at a weird spot in her life. She’s graduated college and is back in her hometown babysitting, housesitting, hanging with her childhood friends, and working at a Pilates studio. Then she spots three skunks crossing the backyard and can’t stop thinking about them.

This book is hard to describe - not a lot happens in the storyline, but the prose reflecting on the time, place, and mood of Isabel at this crossroads point of figuring out what to do in life is so relatable. My favourite chapters were those from the Skunk’s point of view, interacting with the grass and the compost pile, learning how to count from the birds in the trees. This skunk perspective was so fresh and charming, and I honestly would have loved even more.

I look forward to seeing future work from this author!

Thank you to NetGalley and Tin House Books for providing this ARC!

I'm afraid I don't find this book to be fully formed, and perhaps, that may be the point. However, the overwhelming sense that the plot or thematic elements were not completely fleshed out led to overall confusion and a listless reading experience for me. I didn't find the style to be particularly evocative, though I understood there was an attempt at parallel perspectives of Isabel and "the skunks." The mudanity of the plot was not striking in its simplicity, despite all supposed attempts at such. The fact that we as readers were meant to find Isabel's internal monologue to be thought-provoking or groundbreaking in some way felt misplaced. It wasn't until about halfway through that I found anything remotely moving within the quasi-stream-of-consciousness musings. Equally, the general choppiness of the syntax and diction, especially in portions of dialogue, seemed to me to be both devoid of enough detail to convey deeper meaning, as well as not succinct enough to be snappy and forthcoming with successful metaphor.

A gentle, poignant coming-of-age story full of delightful surprises. I came for the skunks (which are an excellent part of the narrative!) but there's so much more to discover in Fiona Warnick's prose and layered characters. I flipped to the first chapter to get a general vibe and accidentally read the whole thing in one sitting!

A lot can change that first summer you’re home from college. Whether it be the town you grew up in or the person you were when you grew up there, the world is ever changing. The skunks addresses that in a very slice of life way, reminding me a lot of “are you there god? It’s me, Margret”. Overall a cute cozy read when you want a book about growing up without falling in love.

many thanks to netgalley and tin house for the ARC!

what a wonderfully quiet yet profound little book about skunks and coming into adulthood and love and friendship and questions without answers and knowing too much but also nothing at all! warnick's writing lolls, meanders, and meditates in a way that is propulsive without any gimmicks or twists. SKUNKS is made up of so many opposing things, folding unto one another until everything that was once black and white becomes grey-- and these grey areas are explored boundlessly. while i loved living in isabel's mind, i could read an entire book from the skunk's perspective alone. cannot wait to read more from fiona warnick

I think that while this book was incredibly well written and fresh, it's just not the book for me. I don't really enjoy "plotless" books, so that could be why? Anyways, I know many will enjoy this one!

Thanks NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC!

Engaging and immersive. This is a recommended purchase for collections where quirkier litfic is popular.

I thoroughly enjoyed the writing here. The prose was gorgeous and I was thoroughly engaged throughout the skunk perspective chapters, but I did get quite lost with who was who and what was happening. This was definitely a no plot, just vibes book though I'd still recommend picking up for a somewhat cozy read

This book confused me. There were moments I felt right there with the characters — the boy crazy feeling while waiting to text or hear from a crush, the nostalgia of coming “home” while trying to understand what home means, etc. However, I struggled with the skunks & felt they didn’t quite work with the alternating POVs. Their parts were a bit jarring & didn’t translate well with what I read to be happening. I’m certain there was deeper meaning than I was picking up, but it wasn’t as clear as it perhaps could have been. That said there are some lovely bits of character development & lyrical language scattered throughout this unique book.

Thanks to NetGalley & W.W. Norton for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

3.5/5 rounded up!

thank you netgalley for this arc!

this book was wildly interesting. following Isabel as she goes through a period of life figuring out the meaning of love, loss, and the future.

i really enjoy each part of this book separately. the POV of the skunk, the pasta with Ellie, Eli, Brynn and Cecilia, the discussion of family, the thoughts of life. but all together the book felt almost disconnect from itself.

The skunk POV was by far my favorite, i loved thinking about life through the eyes of a skunk.

the prose was also really gorgeous, i look forward to reading more by this author

reading THE SKUNKS felt like giving my brain a bath. i felt clean. it was gentle, soothing, sweet, & oh so fresh. in THE SKUNKS, there’s really no plot, but many many quiet, tender, and reflective vibes- and i just really loved it.

isabel is back home after just graduating college. she is spending her time house sitting, baby sitting, working at a yoga studio, and hanging out with her best friend ellie. one day, isabel sees a trio of skunks in the neighborhood, & now she can’t stop thinking about them.

THE SKUNKS is a very charming novel. while feeling like a very private observation of the natural world, it illuminates the thin line between youth and adulthood as isabel navigates one of the many in-betweens of life.

Good book although at times I found it disconnected to its own parts. Still nice and surrealistic at moments, thanks for the arc. 4.5